Central Idaho Project To Restore Fish Habitat Resumes

Officials are once again working to restore fish habitat in the Yankee Fork basin near the central Idaho city of Stanley.

The Mountain Express reports that the restoration is part of a multi-million-dollar series of projects slated for seven years that will repair damage done by years of dredge mining.

This year, crews are putting logs in a stretch of river and modifying the channel to help return the water to more natural conditions.

The work involves the Salmon-Challis National Forest, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes, Trout Unlimited, the Bonneville Power Administration and the J.R. Simplot Co., which owns mining claims to the area.

The work is expected to improve habitat for Chinook salmon and other species of fish.

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Compared to last year, fewer chinook salmon are expected to return to the Snake River basin this fall. But Idaho Fish and Game Commissioners still plan to open a fishing season on parts of the Snake, Clearwater and Salmon rivers. The season opens September 1.

Altogether, a total of 32,000 hatchery and wild chinook are expected to complete the journey to Idaho. Last year 59,000 fish were counted.